07 June 2016

Review: The Fireman

I will preface this by saying that I don't feel that I "got" this book.

On the basic level, this is a strange, post-apocalyptic thing with the Joe Hill touch. People have a disease that eventually makes them combust, and one man is able to control it. The story is somewhat about him, but also about the other people surrounding him, and people sort of figuring out how to exist in the world they're in.

I don't know if there's another message here, or if there's just the sort of inventive way of dealing with existing horror/fantasy tropes that Hill does so well. It's a very well-written page turner, for sure, and there are a lot of little nods throughout that are nice to see, but I can't help comparing it to NOS4A2 (given the similar size/scope) or even Heart-Shaped Box, both of which just seem to work better across the board.

I guess I was just looking for a little more meat, a little something different than what I got. It's a solid read, and if you're into horror or Hill at all, this is basically a must-read, but knowing what he's done before and what he's really capable of on a whole, this just seems like a misfire on a whole. If you want to try Joe Hill, Heart-Shaped Box probably has to come first, but this is probably just a book that shouldn't be at the top of your priority list.